And the Walls Came Tumbling Down
by Protector of Canon2
Summary: Slade's back, and he has his eye on one Titan in particular. But someone else is after Jericho, and there's something he's not saying... A Titans East fic.
1. Welcome to the Titans East, Jerico

Welcome to my new fic, And the Walls Came Tumbling Down. This fic was written in response to Comicbookfan's challenge. For more info, check out her profile.

Oh, and by the way: Yes, the titles to this chapter and the next chapter are a blatant rip-off of some early X-Men comics' titles. So?

Disclaimer: If I owned the Teen Titans, there would be more episodes with the Titans East.

About languages: I know two: Hebrew and English. As such, all other languages will simply be written like this: **The English translation of whatever it is.**

If Mas or Menos are speaking, it's Spanish. Jericho uses Sign Language. Anyone else, I'll specify.

This story is betaed by the amazing WiltingDaisies94! If you have time, check out some of her great stories including one (_Once a Pirate_) that I'm betaing.

One of my readers said that they were confused by the random switches between the characters' superhero names and actual names that I start doing once I tell you the character's actual names. As such, I will include a key at the beginning of each chapter. This key currently consists of zero names, but it'll get longer as the story progresses.

* * *

Welcome to the Titans East, Jericho…

The Steel City Titans Tower was a bit of a mess.

Everything imaginable was scattered over the floor. A yellow streak flashed in and out of the room dropping off and picking up seemingly random objects and babbling in Spanish as Mas and Menos attempted to find whatever they had lost this week. Speedy sat at the table in the center of the room cleaning his bow, sharpening his arrows, and grumbling incoherently each time a gust of wind from the running of the local speedsters sent his hair flying in every direction. Over in the kitchen, Aqualad muttered angrily as he searched through the refrigerator and threw out every one of the many fish products that the archer had bought on his last trip to the mall. Last but not least, Bumblebee hovered overhead, shouting at her teammates and trying to bring them to some semblance of order.

All in all, it was a fairly normal day for the Titans East.

Finally, three energy blasts shot out of Bumblebee's stingers and hit the ground directly in front of Mas y Menos, Aqualad, and Speedy. The four boys quickly stopped what they were doing and turned to look at their glaring leader.

"That's better," Bumblebee announced as she dropped to the floor. "Now that I have your attention, I trust you remember what today is." She looked around at her teammates' blank faces and groaned. "Jericho is arriving today," she reminded them.

Speedy turned pale. "That's _today_?!"

Bumblebee resisted the urge to scream. "Yes, that's today. Now, I'm going to pick him up. When I return, I expect this tower to be presentable. If it isn't, _there will be consequences_." With a final glare, the only girl on the team turned and left the room.

The twin speedsters looked at each other, gulped, and ran off to put away everything they had pulled out in their desperate search for whatever-it-was.

Apparently satisfied that he had found every bit of food that could possibly have been a friend of his at one time or other, Aqualad turned to Speedy.

"What did they lose this time?" he asked while scanning the piles of things on the floor.

"I have _no_ idea," the red-head replied, "but they're driving me insane."

Aqualad opened his mouth to reply, and then froze and stared at something behind Speedy.

"Is that the kitchen sink?"

* * *

When Bumblebee and Jericho entered the tower twenty minutes later, it was much cleaner.

Bumblebee put Jericho's bags down and turned to the blond Titan. "Welcome to Steel City."

"**Thanks,**" he signed back, "**but I'm not really sure what I'm doing here. Beast Boy tried to explain, but I think I was more confused after the explanation than before.**"

"That seems to happen a lot," Aqualad remarked. "It's actually pretty straight forward. After the battle against the Brotherhood, almost every villain who fought any Titan on a regular basis was iced. For most Titans, this means that their job has been a lot easier since then. In contrast, the potential villains of Steel City seem to take it as a challenge. We've had so many new villains in the past few weeks that we decided to look into getting a new member. Beast Boy and Mas both suggested you."

"**I suppose that makes sense,**" Jericho signed.

Speedy look at all the luggage. "Is that a guitar?" Jericho nodded. "You play?" Another nod. "Cool. Come on, I'll show you to your room."

The newest member looked around. "**Um, I don't think I've ever been introduced to some of you.**"

Speedy smirked. "Alright, here's the Titans East in a nutshell: Bee's our leader. She's quick-tempered, irritating, and a bit of a control freak, but we like her anyways. Most of the time, at least. She can fly, she shrinks, and she's got those laser guns she calls stingers.

"Aqualad is strong, breathes underwater, controls water, and talks to fish. He's pretty uptight, and he throws a fit if you so much as mention seafood.

"Mas and Menos have super speed, but only when they touch each other. They understand English just fine, but they refuse to speak anything other than Spanish. They're childish and annoying, and they break or lose everything that they get their hands on eventually.

"Saving the best for last, I'm Speedy. I'm a pretty cool guy, I'm the greatest archer in the world—"

"And he's completely obsessed with himself. He spends more time on his hair then I do on mine," Bumblebee finished.

The archer shrugged. "I can't deny that," he admitted, "but my hair does look _much_ better than hers. OW! What was that for?"

Bumblebee just smiled and turned to the newest member, who seemed to be torn between amusement and shock. "I'll give you the grand tour while the boys take your stuff to your room."

With that, she led the silent boy to the gym.

Speedy turned to the others. "What do you think of him?"

Mas cocked his head. "**He didn't say very much, did he?**"

His brother gave him a Look. "**Mas, he's **_**mute**_**.**"

"**You know what I mean!**"

Menos shrugged. "**How could he? Speedy didn't give him a chance.**"

Speedy chose to ignore that. "I like his hair, and he plays the guitar. I wonder how good he is."

"He seems nice," Aqualad noted, "but I think I'll reserve judgment on whether he belongs on the team until I see him fight."

"Whatever," muttered Speedy as he walked over to the kitchen. "Hey, what happened to my fish sticks?"

"I threw them out!" Aqualad replied angrily. "I've already said this so many times: by buying those products, you encourage that murder of countless fish, many of whom are my friends!"

The archer glared at him. "Did you even bother to read the ingredients?"

"They were _fish sticks_; of course they had—"

"They were _vegetarian_, you idiot!"

There wasn't very much the Atlantian could say to that.

* * *

"So that's a slightly less biased run-down of the Titans East," Bumblebee finished. "Any questions?"

Jericho thought for a moment. "**Do all of you know sign language?**"

The leader of the Titans East laughed shortly. "After all the trouble we had in the beginning when no one understood a word Mas or Menos said, we thought it would be a good idea to learn sign language _before_ you came."

The mute smiled. "**Makes sense. But it does bring up another problem: I only know a little Spanish.**"

"Learn it." Bumblebee looked at her new teammate's startled expression and laughed lightly. "Sorry, but I can't think of anything else to tell you. We think they _could_ speak English—they certainly understand it—but they refuse. The only time I've ever heard them say anything in English was when Control Freak forced them to. Don't ask," she added before his hands could even start moving. "It's a long story. I'll tell you some other time.

"Anyways, don't worry about learning Spanish: We'll all help."

Jericho gave a small smile. "**I've never really been on a team before,**" he admitted. "**I worked with Beast Boy, Mas, and the others, but that was just for one battle. It's been a long time since I lived with anyone else, and I've never fought alongside anyone on a regular basis. This may take some getting used to.**"

"It's alright," Bumblebee said, "we all had an adaptation period.

"Okay, now it's my turn to ask some questions."

The body-jumper looked wary. "**What sort of questions?**"

"Nothing too personal," the winged girl reassured him, "and you don't have to answer. We all have things we'd rather not talk about.

"So, you play guitar, right? Are you any good?"

"**I like to think so. I've written some music, but…**" He shrugged.

"You've _written_ music? You'll have to play for us at some—"

She was cut off by a flashing red light and a sound not unlike a police siren. Bumblebee was instantly all business.

"That's the alarm. Come on!"

* * *

There's the first chapter, hope you like it!

Next: The Titans East face off against Slade, but there's something odd going on…


	2. We Hope You Survive The Experience

Chapter two contains the first action scene. It's not a major battle, but action is my weakest point, so I really need you to review and tell me how to improve.

Without further ado, the second chapter:

* * *

We Hope You Survive The Experience!

When Bumblebee and Jericho reached the computer, the other four boys were already huddled around it.

"It's Slade," Aqualad called as they approached. "His 'bots are holding up the Steel City Bank."

Jericho froze, his eyes wide with horror.

Bumblebee ran up to the screen, missing her newest teammate's reaction completely. "Robbing a bank? That doesn't sound like Slade. He hasn't been seen since Raven's birthday, and now he decides to rob a bank?!"

Speedy glanced at her. "You think he's up to something?"

"It's Slade," the team leader replied, "when is he _not_ up to something? Not that it matters: We can't let him rob the bank."

The archer looked up. "Wait, should we tell the Titans West? They have some issues of their own with Slade."

"We don't have time now." Bumblebee decided, "We'll tell them afterward. TITANS GO!"

* * *

Inside the bank, the scene was one of terror and confusion.

The army of robots had been holding customers and tellers alike hostage for nearly ten minutes, but they had yet to make any demands. A tense, still silence had spread; every one of the civilians was too terrified to move.

Suddenly, unnoticed by even the robots, a thin, athletic man who had been staring out the window gave a start and began to carefully scan the room.

For several seconds, there was complete silence in the bank. Then, a barely audible whimper was heard from the corner and was silenced almost immediately as the robots swung around towards the sound.

With a _click_ and a _wrr_ the closest Slade-bot raised an arm and cocked the gun that was now pointed directly at the petrified civilian—

And was blown off its feet by the streak of yellow that zoomed in through the suddenly open door.

Two other robots collapsed with red-feathered arrows sprouting from their chests.

Several pipes in the ceiling burst as the water flowed out of them and engulfed a robot, causing it to short out, before leaping to the next.

A miniscule dot flew from machine to machine as beams of energy flew from it into the robots and sent them crashing to the ground.

On the floor, the man who had moved earlier shuddered slightly as a blond boy seemed to grow out of his back. The newest combatant immediately leapt into the fray and took down several of the machines with quick, powerful movements.

In minutes, it was over.

The floor was littered with twitching Slade-bots—some sparking, some with cracked heads or limbs, all thoroughly defeated.

The civilians slowly stood and began to gather their wits as the six Titans stood together in the center of the room. A low buzz of conversation filled as the captives began to recover from their ordeal.

Then one Slade- bot suddenly jerked several times and the sound of applause came from its chest.

Silence fell once more; the only sounds that could be heard were the slow claps and the _clang_ as the metal plate on the robot's chest fell off to reveal a screen showing the mask of Slade.

"Congratulations, Titans."

"What do you want, Slade?" Bumblebee demanded. "Why did your robots hold up this bank?"

"Nothing malicious," Slade replied, "merely a test. I heard that you had a new member, and I wanted to see what he was capable of. Jericho, was it? Quite impressive."

"Back off, Slade," Speedy snarled, "leave Jericho alone!"

"Oh, I had no intention of harming Jericho," Slade said smoothly, "I simply wished to observe his capabilities. I have a vested interest in the well-being of your team."

Speedy snorted. "You 'mean no harm?' You actually care about someone other than yourself? Do you seriously expect us to believe that?"

From the tone of his voice, Slade seemed to be smirking. "Quite frankly, I don't care one way or another whether or not you believe me. That comment was not directed at you. Farewell, Titans; I'll be watching you." With that, the robot dissolved in a puddle of acid.

Aqualad blinked. "Where did the acid come from?"

Bumblebee shrunk and flew up to get a closer look at the remains. "Some sort of self-destruct mechanism, I think. It looks like the acid was released when Slade signed off." She returned to her normal size and looked anxiously at her teammates. "We have to contact the Jump City Titans. If Slade is after Jericho…" She shook her head. "Bad things have happened to the people Slade has chosen as apprentices."

Speedy snorted again. "That's an understatement. Seriously, 'no intention of harming Jericho'? Who does he think he's kidding?"

For no one had noticed the look of relief that had crossed the body-jumper's face when Slade had said those words.

* * *

"Hey, Bee. What's up?" The Titans East were gathered around the computer to speak via video call with Cyborg.

"Hi, Cyborg," Bumblebee said quickly. "Is Robin there?"

"He's meeting with a representative of T.U.R.F., (1)" Cyborg replied. "Is everything alright? I don't think you've ever actually called me Cyborg before."

Bumblebee took a deep breath. "Slade is in Steel City."

"Are you sure?"

"Well, we don't know where he is, but his robots held up a bank, and he left a message for us."

Cyborg frowned. "They held up a bank? What did they want?"

Bumblebee shrugged. "Seemingly just to fight us. They didn't make any demands. But," she confessed, "something about the battle seemed a bit too easy. And then he singled out Jericho…"

Cyborg swore. "Well, there goes the theory that this was just something Slade left behind before he disappeared. I guess he really is back. But listen: If he's interested in Jericho, then Jericho could be in serious danger. For that matter, so could your entire team. Don't underestimate Slade."

Jericho tapped Speedy hesitantly. "**Everyone keeps talking about how evil Slade is, but what has he done?**"

"Um," Speedy turned back to the screen. "He said—"

"My data banks have sign language in them. I know what he said. You guys better explain everything to him. He needs to understand what he's up against. I need to talk this over with my team. We'll call you if something comes up. Cyborg—"

"Sparky, wait. Slade said something about having a 'vested interest' in our well-being. What could that mean?"

Cyborg's face darkened. "Don't trust that man. He always has an agenda, and it rarely helps anyone except for him. Whatever you do, be careful. Cyborg out."

Bumblebee turned to her newest teammate. "You may want to sit down, Jericho. There's a lot to tell."

* * *

1: The Titans Urban Reconstruction Fund raises money to repair damage done during the Titans' battles. It's been mentioned in the comics multiple times.

Next: The story switches to Jericho's POV as he attempts to reconcile the monster that the Titans have encountered with his memories of his father.

Please review. Remember, I can't improve unless you tell me what I'm doing right or wrong!


	3. His Father's Son

And I'm back!

This is the first chapter in which I need a key, so…

Joseph/Joey=Jericho

Now, without further ado, the next chapter!

* * *

His Father's Son

Joseph "Jericho" Wilson was confused.

He was also afraid, relieved, disgusted, and more than a little bit horrified, but mostly confused.

The story that he had just heard—the apprentice saga, then Terra, then the end of the world, and finally Robin's rather unique hallucinations—was difficult to put a positive spin on, and even more difficult to reconcile with his own memories.

Joey remembered a rather intense man who was there when he was needed and loved his family above all else. All things considered, Slade Wilson had not been a bad father.

Granted, Joey knew little about his father's professional life, but he had always heard that, as assassins go, Deathstroke was rather humane: He refused to accept certain contracts, including those on children and mob hits; he usually killed quickly and with minimal pain; ect.

But the Slade that the Titans had encountered sounded like a monster. From what Bumblebee had described (with many interjections from Speedy), the man had tortured Robin, used and corrupted an innocent girl, and nearly helped—quite deliberately—to bring about the end of the world. True, he had helped Robin find Raven and thus ultimately saved the world; but, the way Bumblebee told it, even that had been a selfish act.

One thing was certain: This was not the Slade Wilson that Joey remembered.

Yet the man that had talked to the Titans at the bank had been very much the Slade that he remembered: He had been calm and collected, and he had specifically told Joey that he was watching out for him.

Despite everything that he had heard, he still felt a warm glow at the thought of his father's praise.

And therein lay the core of his problem: What should he tell his teammates?

He had not planned to bring up the fact that his father was a mercenary, but that was when he thought that it would be a non-issue. Now that Slade had contacted the Titans East, Joey could no longer ignore his father's existence. He had to make a decision.

On one hand, the Titans seemed genuinely worried about him. If he could reassure them that Slade didn't want to harm him, wouldn't they appreciate that?

On the other hand, what if they hated him for what his father had done or, worse yet, worried that he would be another Terra?

On the other hand, what would the Titans think if they found out about his relation to Slade from anyone else? Given Robin's reputation, Jericho wouldn't be surprised if the young detective made the connection.

On the other hand, shouldn't they understand? As Bumblebee had said, they all had things in their past that they'd rather not talk about.

On the other hand, this could become a security issue.

On the other hand, would they be able to trust him once they knew?

On the other hand, wasn't Raven's father a demon? And they trusted her.

On the other hand, Raven hated her father, and Joey could not bring himself to hate his.

In spite of everything that he had heard, Joseph Wilson loved his father.

"Jericho? Are you alright?"

Joey looked up at the other Titans, who were watching him anxiously.

"**I'm… it's a lot to digest**," he replied. "**I think I need some time to get my thoughts in order. Is it okay if I take a walk?**"

"Fine," Bumblebee replied. "But, Jericho, if Slade contacts you in any way, no matter how harmless it may seem, you'll tell us, won't you? Because there's no way of knowing what he's really up to."

Jericho nodded, but he wasn't really so sure.

* * *

Twenty minutes, five foiled muggings, and two foiled rapes later, Jericho stood outside the bank where he had fought his father's minions earlier that day.

He had heard Steel City referred to as "America's Cesspool," and he found himself agreeing based on what he had seen in the short time that he had spent there so far, but he had to admit that he was quite impressed with the speed with which they had repaired all the damage that had been done during the battle.

Less than two hours after the bank had been attacked, it was in business once again.

Despite his still-troubled mind, Joey found himself smiling.

"Hey! Hey, um, Jericho, right?"

Joey spun around to face the man who was calling his name and gasped: it was the same man that he had possessed in order to enter the bank undetected.

He turned bright red and began to sign very quickly. "**I'm sorry for using your body, but I couldn't think of any other way to get inside. I hope the experience wasn't too unpleasant; I rarely possess people that I would ask—**"

"Dude," the man cut him off, "why are you waving your hands at me?"

Jericho sighed. Then he pointed first at his mouth, and then at his neck where a thin, mostly faded scar was just barely visible to someone who knew what they were looking for.

The man frowned. "What, you're… mute?" he guessed. Jericho nodded. "So that was Sign Language?' Jericho nodded again. "Sorry, I, um, don't know Sign Language."

Jericho reached into his pocket and pulled out the pen and pad of paper that he carried at all times. "I've noticed that few people do," he wrote, and handed the paper to the civilian."

The man read it over and chuckled. "That must get pretty annoying."

Jericho shrugged.

"Listen," the man said, "I'm Aaron(1). I just, I wanted to thank you. You and the Titans saved my life. My little brother and sister were in the bank—I seriously thought that we were all going to die. I—thanks."

Jericho stared at him. "Aren't you upset that I used your body?" he wrote.

Aaron laughed. "Are you kidding? Now I can tell everyone that I helped the Teen Titans save the bank!

"Look, I've got to get back and make sure my family isn't worrying about me. I doubt that there's anything I can give you; but, if you ever ask, I'll do anything I can to pay you back."

Before Jericho could reply, Aaron was on his way home.

Joey watched the civilian leave and smiled.

Without realizing it, Aaron had given him something priceless. Aaron had reminded him that, no matter who his family was, no one but he could decide who he would be.

Slade Wilson may have been a mercenary, but Joseph Wilson was a hero.

Jericho was the son of Slade, but he not his father.

* * *

1: A little gift to my friend Gabi who insists that every bit character ever is named Larry, and is incredibly irritated by that.

See Gabi, mine is named Aaron!

Remember to review!

Next: Well, Joey may have come to terms with who his father is (or at least who he thinks his father is) but he still needs to decide whether or not to tell his teammates. Then, as Joey returns to the tower, he realizes that he's being watched…

See you in two weeks when: A New Player Enters The Game.


	4. A New Player Enters the Game

I tried something pretty daring in this chapter: I'm giving Joey's POV on what it feels like to possess someone. Hopefully it won't turn out too horribly.

Joseph/Joey=Jericho

Anything in italics (in case it isn't clear) is thoughts.

* * *

A New Player Enters the Game

Jericho was feeling much better when he began to walk back to Titan's Tower. He still had no idea what, if anything, he was going to tell his teammates about his connection to Slade, but at least he knew now that he could deal with his father's actions, even if his friends could not.

He was around halfway home when a raspy voice called, "Turn around."

Slightly bemused, Joey turned to face the rough thug who was pointing a gun at a point somewhere in the vicinity of Jericho's right elbow.

Jericho's body shook slightly with silent laughter. Did this man have any idea who he was?

Apparently not; the man smirked. "Shaking with fear, are ya, pretty boy? I like the looks of ya. Come closer," he said, gesturing with his gun as his finger left the trigger. "Now, or I'll shoot."

Not intimidated in the least, Joey caught the man's eye and leapt into his body.

Instantly, everything changed as he began to look at the alley through another man's eyes.

It was always interesting to discover how different people saw the same world. A philosopher had once suggested the possibility that every person sees colors differently: What we call "red" may look to one man the way "blue" looks to another. Joey's unique experience had taught him that this was not true, but that didn't mean that everyone saw the world the same way.

Joey had possessed people who noticed almost nothing. It was a struggle to use their senses to take in anything about the outside world, and they were generally incapable of focusing on more than one thing at a time.

Joey's eyes, through a mixture of his nature and the training that had kept him alive in the business of superheroism, were trained to see everything, but only to process the information that was important or strange.

This man also noticed everything, and everything seemed to terrify him. Every shadow seemed through his eyes to be a police officer or a member of a rival gang. The white noise of the city—cars, televisions, footsteps, conversations—roared in his ears. Every voice or footstep was a bystander who might witness his crimes. Through the eyes of this man who had spent his life on the streets of Steel City, the world was a dark and dangerous place.

A loud curse word echoed through the confines of the thug's mind. "_What happened to the pretty boy?_" he wondered.

Jericho laughed. "_I'm right here._"

The man swore again. "_What are ya doing in my head?_"

"_Language,_" Jericho chided. "_I'm not legally an adult—we're the _Teen_ Titans, after all—so you really shouldn't use such words in my presence._"

"_How did you get into my head? Get out of my head!_"

"_You're not a very intelligent criminal, are you? I realize that 'intelligent criminal' may be an oxymoron, but I would think that most would know better than to attempt an attack on the newest member of the local Teen Titans team. Since you seem not to have done your research, I'll introduce my self. I'm Jericho. If I make eye contact with a person, I can possess them. It's nice to meet you._"

"_Huh?_"

"_I'm sorry, should I use smaller words? You're not sesquipedaliopobic, are you_" (1)

The only answer was a string of obscenities.

"_What, no welcome? I'm new to the city, and I would appreciate some acknowledgement. You know, if I had some soap, I'd wash your mouth out. Since I don't…_"

Jericho took control of the body, turned to the nearest wall, and began running toward it at full speed. He pulled out of the body at the last second, leaving his would-be attacker to run into a wall and knock himself unconscious.

Still laughing, Joey pulled a pair of handcuffs out of his pocket—another necessity he never left home without_—_and fastened the man's hands behind his back around a sturdy pipe. He prepared to leave a signal for the police—and froze as some sixth sense warned him that he was being watched.

With a casual air designed to prevent his watcher from realizing that he had been discovered, Joey stood up and scanned the alley. He caught sight of a lock of jet-black hair before the person leapt back into the shadows and out of view.

Jericho pulled out his communicator and, praying that his teammates knew Morse Code, typed out da-da-da… "**Someone is watching me. It's not Slade.**"

He closed the communicator, placed it back in his pocket, and stepped toward the shadow where he had seen whoever-it-was.

Suddenly, his breath caught in his throat and he fell to his knees as he was overcome with a debilitating terror the likes of which he had never before experienced.

* * *

1: Sesquipedaliopobic—the fear of long words. Yes, that really is a real word.

Well? Did it work? I just realized that this chapter has a ton of pointless development of a pointless character, but oh well.

And how do you like my cliffie?

Don't forget to review! (You were going to submit one anyway, _right_? I don't need to remind you to review, _right_? Especially those of you who subscribed to this story…)

Next: What's Jericho so afraid of? Who's watching him? Will his teammates ever find out about his father? See you next time for: Fear Itself.


	5. Fear Itself

Starting in this chapter, I'm going to be doing a little bit of jumping around with the POVs. Hopefully it won't be too confusing; if it is, let me know and I'll try to explain it to you.

Joseph/Joey=Jericho

* * *

Fear Itself

"Jericho? Jericho, where are you?"

Joey barely registered Bumblebee's voice; he was still kneeling on the ground where he had fallen when struck by the panic attack. He attempted to rise and signal to his teammates in some way, but he found himself unable to move due to the fear that had suddenly taken control of his body. Barely daring to breathe, he slowly pulled himself into the shadows as far from the place where he had seen the flash of black hair as possible.

When a yellow streak flashed through the alley, he huddled in the darkness, praying to some unknown deity that he would not be seen. (1) For a minute or two, it seemed that his prayers had been answered; then the streak returned to the alley and blurred into the Teen Titan's twin speedsters.

"**See?**" Mas told his brother, "**I told you there was someone here.**"

Menos looked from the ugly bruise on the man's head to the spot on the wall at approximately the height of the man's head that was slightly cracked. "**He seems to have run into a wall,**" he noted, "**so either he's incredibly stupid, or he got into a fight with Jericho.**" He paused for a moment and considered what he had just said. "**Or both.**"

"**It does look like Jericho was here,**" Mas observed, "**but where is he now?**"

"**THERE!**" Menos had caught sight of their teammate huddled in the darkness, hugging his knees to his chest, and staring at them out of his large, blue eyes.

Mas and Menos ran up to him. "**Jericho? Jericho, are you alright?**"

Consciously, Joey knew that he had nothing to fear from the two boys in front of him. He knew that they were his allies and friends; he knew that they would not hurt him, but the closer they came, the more terrified he became. When one of them reached out a hand toward him, he shrank back until his back was pressed so hard against the wall that it hurt.

The two boys glanced at each other and disappeared in a streak of light.

Even as Joey's mind screamed at him that he needed their help, he found himself breathing a sigh of relief. Then they were back, quite literally dragging the rest of the team with them.

"Hey!" Speedy screamed when he suddenly found himself in an alley. "Warn a person before you decide to pick them up and drag them—Jericho?"

Joey hugged his legs closer to his chest, closed his eyes, and buried his face in his knees.

Speedy crouched down in front of his teammate. "Jericho?" he asked softly. "Are you okay?"

Without opening his eyes or looking up, Joey shook his head.

"You look like you're terrified of something," Speedy noted.

Eyes still closed, head still down, Joey nodded.

"Hey," Speedy assured him, "it'll be fine, whatever it is. You're a Titan now, and Titans keep each other safe." He reached out to place a reassuring hand on Joey's shoulder, but pulled back as the blond boy shrank away from his touch.

"Poseidon,(2)" Aqualad breathed. "Speedy, he's afraid of _us_!"

Bumblebee frowned. "Why would he be afraid of us? He knows we would never hurt him." She bit her lip. "Don't you?" she whispered.

Joey nodded.

"Nevertheless," Aqualad said, "he's afraid of us."

Joey didn't move.

"Look," Bumblebee said, "there has to be _some_ reason for his fear. Was it Slade?"

Joey shook his head.

"It wasn't that man over there, was it?" Bumblebee asked, indicating the unconscious man chained to the pipe.

Joey shook his head.

"Please," Bumblebee pleaded, "please, Jericho, give us some clue about what happened!"

Joey opened his eyes, lifted his head, and pointed a shaking finger at the shadows where he had seen the flash of black hair.

Speedy quietly stood up, looking cautiously around the alley as he did. He pulled out his bow; cocked an arrow; and, pointing the arrow at the ground so that he could shoot at the slightest hint of an enemy's presence, entered the small side-alley that Jericho had indicated. Two minutes later, he walked back into view.

"There's no one there," he said, shaking his head, "and it doesn't look like there ever was."

Bumblebee took a deep breath and stood up. "Okay, let's go back to the tower and call the Titans West. Maybe Raven will be able to figure out what's going on."

* * *

"Well?" Robin asked as soon as he entered the tower, "What can you tell me about what happened?"

"Jericho sent a call for help, and then didn't answer when we called back," Bumblebee summarized. "We began looking for him right away, and when we found him he was, well, like this." She gestured to the boy who was huddled on the couch like a terrified child.

"Cyborg told us that Slade contacted and expressed interest in your team," Robin said, "particularly Jericho. Do you think this is related?"

"It doesn't seem to be," Bumblebee told him, "but we haven't really been able to get a straight answer out of Jericho about what happened."

Robin considered that. "I don't think I'm prepared to dismiss any possibility yet."

Raven frowned. "I can feel his fear," she said. "It's debilitating, and it seems… tainted."

"Tainted?" Beast Boy asked. "Like, dirty? Is he afraid of mud now?"

Menos snorted. "**He was crouching in the mud, Pet Boy. I don't think he's afraid of it.**"

"Tainted," Raven interrupted before Beast Boy could realize that he had been insulted, "as in unnatural. The fear seems to have been forced upon him by some outside source."

Robin blinked, "Like that gas of Slade's that made me think I was fighting him? Or Scarecrow's fear toxin?"

"No," Raven said emphatically. "This fear was caused by an empath, not a chemical."

"In other words," Beast Boy said, "not Slade."

"Do we really know that?" Everybody turned to stare at Aqualad. "What I mean is, all we really know about Slade is what Slade wants us to know. Is it really impossible that he has some sort of empathic power?"

"Friends," Starfire cut in, "before we engage in the detecting, isn't there anything we can do to cure Friend Jericho of this terrible fear?"

"I think so," Raven said calmly. "If I enter his mind, I should be able to overcome the outside force."

Joey gasped as that statement penetrated the haze of his terror. This was something tangible to be afraid of; an actual threat.

If Raven entered his mind, could she possibly _not_ discover who his father was?

* * *

1: I have no idea if Joey is ever mentioned as part of any religion, so I'm just gonna be really vague about this if it ever comes up. Okay? Okay.

2: Um, Atlantians worship Poseidon, right? 'Cause he's the god of the sea and all that, and doesn't Aquaman use a trident just like his?

Next: We get inside Joey's head and find out more about what's scaring him. Also, Raven has some interesting things to say about Joey's father.

See you next time when: A Secret Is Revealed

And don't forget to review!


	6. A Secret Is Revealed

Just in case it isn't clear, the reason Joey's talking in this chapter is because most of the action takes place on what's known as the astral plane. Basically, most of this is happening in Joey's head.

Joseph/Joey=Jericho

* * *

A Secret Is Revealed

Raven walked over to Jericho, who shrank back as though from something horrifying. "Jericho," she said, "I can help you. Will you let me?"

He shook his head and shrank farther back, and Raven felt a flash of real, natural fear through the artificial terror that seemed to cover the blond boy.

"If I see some sort of secret while I'm in there, no matter what it is, I won't tell anyone without permission," she promised.

She seemed to have correctly guessed the reason for his fear; Jericho hesitated for a moment, then nodded.

Raven sat down on the couch next to Jericho and took his trembling hand in her own. Then she took a deep breath and projected her soul-self into his body.

* * *

Raven looked around. She was in a fairly large room. It was rectangular with metal walls, a metal ceiling, and a metal floor. There was no door. The lighting came from some unknown source, and the room was empty except for her and a trembling child who could have been Jericho several years ago.

The boy let out a small whimper.

Raven walked up to him slowly. "Jericho?"

"I'm not Jericho," the boy said softly. "At least, not yet. I think I will be someday, but right now I'm just Joey. You're Raven, aren't you? Will you help me? I'm scared."

Raven knelt down in front of the quivering child. "I'm trying to, Joseph, but I need your help. I need you to tell me what's wrong."

"It's Jackal," Joey whispered, tears fighting to fall from his eyes. "He's kidnapped me to get revenge on my father. Mommy and Daddy are going to try and rescue me, and then," his voice dropped so low that Raven had to strain to hear his last words, "everything's going to go wrong." He grabbed Raven's hand and stared into her eyes. "Raven, I'm so scared."

"It's going to be alright," Raven promised. "I'll keep you safe."

Joseph smiled shyly at her, whispered, "Thank you," and disappeared.

Raven stared at the now-empty air in front of her for half a second before she heard a terrified scream. She spun around to find the small boy struggling in the grip of… something. It looked almost like the shadow of a man; indistinct and hazy; but it was solid enough to hold Joseph in place. One colorless arm was wrapped around the child's chest, holding him in place, and the other held a glinting silver knife to his throat.

Joey's terrified eyes stared into Raven's own, pleading, seeming to pierce her very soul.

"Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos!" she screamed, and the shadows of her own power flew out to engulf Joseph's shadowy captor, causing it to vanish and the boy to drop lightly to the floor.

Raven heard a sound behind her and turned just in time to see two figures before they faded and disappeared.

The woman was quite beautiful, with dark brown hair and matching eyes.

The other figure was a man with blond hair and shockingly blue eyes, but it was his outfit that caught Raven's eye. Even without the mask, it was clearly Slade. (1)

"Now you know." Jericho stood where the child and his shadowy attacker had been minutes before, having returned to his proper age.

"Was that…?"

"Adeline and Slade Wilson," Jericho replied, staring at Raven's feet so that he would not have to see the expression on her face. "My parents."

"That's why you didn't want me to enter your mind," Raven guessed. "You haven't told your team yet."

Jericho nodded, still looking down.

"Well," Raven said dryly, "you hid it well. I never would have seen this coming."

Jericho lifted his head and looked Raven in the eyes at last. "Please don't hold this against me," he begged. "I'm not a spy, I really am a Titan, I— "

"Joseph," Raven interrupted, "have you forgotten who you're talking to? My father tried to destroy the world. Using me."

Jericho sighed and folded his arms. "Yeah, well, your father's master plan involved sacrificing you to the cause," he muttered. "As far as he was concerned, you existed in order to die. _My_ father—well, you saw—Jackal wanted nothing more than to cause my father the most intense pain possible, and my parents walked into a trap—they _knew_ it was a trap—in order to save me.

"It's a lot harder to forgive someone for their parentage when their father actually acts like a father."

"So when he contacted you…?"

"I really do think that he was checking up on my well-being. I don't think he'll hurt me."

Raven raised an eyebrow.

"Raven," Joey pleaded, "he's my _father_. I really do think that he cares about me. You—you won't tell the others, will you?" His voice took on a note of panic. "Please, Raven, you promised you wouldn't."

Raven looked at him for a few minutes, and then nodded. "I won't tell," she promised, "but I want your permission to do one thing: If there's ever a time when I think the Titans need to know and I, for whatever reason, cannot contact you, I want your permission to tell them."

Jericho hesitated, then sighed. "Fine. If you really can't ask me, then go ahead and tell them. But only if they need to know. You, of all people, should understand."

"Joseph," Raven said, "I really don't think that they'll hold it against you."

Joey smiled sadly. "I wish I was sure about that."

Raven looked around. The metal prison had faded away when she had defeated the shadow-creature, leaving them in a large, grassy field with a clear blue sky overhead.

"Joseph," she said hesitantly, "if you don't mind me asking, why did Jackal kidnap you?"

"I—my father is an assassin," Joey said quietly. "Deathstroke the Terminator. He killed someone close to Jackal, and Jackal wanted revenge. He meant to slit my throat while my parents watched, but Father was faster. Just… not fast enough. Jackal cut through my vocal cords, and I haven't spoken with my own voice since." He laughed hollowly. "Actually, that was when we first found out that Father was an assassin. Before that, he had done a very good job of keeping his family life and his professional life separate. After that," his voice dropped to the point where Raven could barely hear him, "it wasn't an issue."

There was a slightly uncomfortable silence.

"Joseph," Raven said finally, "do you think you're ready to return?"

Jericho nodded. "Just—one thing before we do. I'm perfectly fine with you addressing me by my real name, but I'd prefer if you didn't use it where anyone else might hear. Secret identity, and all that."

"That sounds fair," Raven replied. "Now, shall we go?"

With a nod and a flash of black light, they were gone.

* * *

1: Apparently Slade's hair was blond during the Jackal saga. I guess it turned white later.

Next: Okay, we've figured out what happened to Joey, (sort of, but it will be explained; not to worry) but who could do that to him? And who would want to?

See you in two weeks when we'll do some: Brainstorming.

And don't forget to review!


	7. Brainstorming

The point of this chapter is essentially to throw out a few ideas and point out some things I want you to understand/focus on, plus we've got a few fun character moments.

Most of all; however, it's a transition into the next few chapters.

So, now that we're out of Joey's head…

Joseph/Joey=Jericho  
Roy=Speedy

* * *

Brainstorming

When Jericho opened his eyes, he was huddled on the couch next to Raven. The other members of the two teams were sitting at the table, discussing something quietly.

As Joey slowly sat up and straightened his limbs, Mas was the first to notice. The Spanish boy grabbed his brother's hand and ran over to his teammate.

"**Jericho!**"

Bumblebee looked at Raven. "What exactly happened to him?"

"The mechanics of it are fairly complex," Raven replied, "but the short version is that he was emotionally trapped in the most terrifying moment of his life."

Speedy looked at the blond boy with a mixture of horror and pity. "My god, are you alright?"

"**I am now,**" Jericho replied. "**Really, I am**," he continued at Speedy's slightly doubtful expression. "**It was a moment from my past. I've dealt with it before and, now that Raven has freed me from that empathic trap, I can do so again.**"

"But you don't need to," Bumblebee told him. "You are a Titan, and we'll help you in every way we can. All you need to do is ask."

"**Thank you,**" Jericho replied honestly, "**I'll remember that.**"

"Jericho," Robin spoke up, "do you know who did this?" Jericho shook his head. "Could it have been Slade?" Joey shook his head again without even bothering to consider the suggestion. Robin frowned. "How do you know?"

Jericho froze and caught Raven's eye.

She looked back unblinkingly, silently telling him that _he_ would have to answer.

"**I'm not sure,**" Joey signed hesitantly. "**I just… have a feeling…**"

Robin raised an eyebrow, but he did not press the issue, a fact that Jericho appreciated immensely.

"Well," Robin said instead, "I examined the alley while Raven was working with Jericho, and I didn't find anything that Speedy did not." He shook his head. "I'm sorry, but there's no sign that anyone was there."

Joey's head snapped up. "**There **_**was**_** someone there!**" he insisted. "**I saw someone there!**"

"I don't doubt that," Robin replied. "Someone must have been there, because someone attacked you empathically. Unfortunately, whoever-it-was was _very_ good at covering his tracks. There are no clues about who he is, or where he may be now."

Menos glanced at his brother. "**He **_**says**_** that he has no idea, but he seems pretty confident that it's a boy.**"

Mas shrugged. "**Well, considering how many more male super-villains there are than female super-villains…**"

"**Yeah,**" Menos nodded, "**we defiantly need more hot girls to fight.**"

"**We need more hot girls, period. Preferably some who aren't taken.**"

Menos glanced at Starfire and whispered so softly that only Mas and Speedy, who were sitting right next to him, could hear, "**She is far too good for him**."

Mas snickered and nodded.

Speedy smacked the speedsters lightly on the back of their heads. "Of course Robin doesn't know that it wasn't a girl, you moron, it's just a pain to say 'he or she' every single time."

"**Because you, of course, are famous for your intellect. Oh, no, wait, it was for your hair. Ugliness fascinates the civilians.**"

"Hey, don't diss the hair."

"**What, it's not like I said anything that wasn't true.**"

"Okay, that's it—"

"STOP!" With an angry buzz, Bumblebee flew between the boys. "If you want to kill each other, fine. But do it on your own time. Right now, we're trying to figure out who attacked your teammate. If you two aren't mature enough to help, then _get_._ Out_."

Speedy and Menos looked absolutely terrified.

With a final glare at them, Bumblebee turned back to the detective. "So, if you couldn't find any clues, where do we start looking for the perp?"

"Well, Jericho said he saw someone, so…?"

Jericho shook his head. "**Nothing that would be helpful, sorry. All I saw was some black hair, and there are a lot of people with black hair.**"

"_Black_ hair?" Robin asked sharply. "You're sure it was black?" Joey nodded, puzzled, and Robin sighed. "Well, that rules out Slade. I never saw his face while I was his apprentice, but I once saw the back of his head," Robin explained in response to the confused expressions on the other Titans' faces. "His hair is white."

Jericho felt silently relieved that he would not have to convince his friends of his father's innocence.

"Just because Slade didn't do it doesn't mean that the person who did wasn't working with Slade," Cyborg pointed out. "Slade has already proven that he's willing to work with just about anyone."

Jericho bit his lip. He was sure that his father wasn't involved, but how could he convince his teammates without raising awkward questions? He caught Raven's eye desperately, but she shook her head as if to say, "_You have to make this decision yourself_."

Before Joey decided either way, Aqualad spoke up. "What I'd like to know is whether this was random, or if Jericho was targeted. And if he was targeted, was the criminal after Jericho, or Jericho the Titan?"

"**Well, I'm pretty sure he was following me,**" Jericho replied, "**but I'm not sure what you mean by the second question.**"

"Is this something personal," Aqualad elaborated, "or were they after any one of the Teen Titans?"

"Unfortunately," Robin said grimly, "there isn't really any way to know that. Unless we can find more clues, the best we can do is guess." He stood up. "I don't think that there's anything else to do here. We'll let you know if we come up with anything else, and if you need us for any reason…"

"We'll call you," Bumblebee promised. "Thank you, Robin."

Robin nodded. "Titans, let's move."

Before she left, Raven turned to Jericho. "If you ever feel the need to discus anything, I'll be available," she said, and walked out the door.

* * *

With the Titans West gone, Bumblebee turned to her mute teammate. "Jericho, are you sure you're okay? You didn't look so great when we found you."

Jericho gave a small half-smile. "**It was… unpleasant,**" he admitted, "**but you heard Raven: If I need someone to talk to, I'll talk to her. She has a… unique understanding of the situation.**"

Bumblebee considered that and nodded. "Okay. Just know that we're here for you whenever you need us." She hesitated before continuing. "Jericho, I'm not sure how to say this, but… someone has been targeting you, Jericho. If there's something in your past that could give us a hint as to why—"

"Bee, you can't ask him to do that," Speedy interrupted.

"Speedy—"

"Bee, I can see where you're coming from, but you can't just ask him to tell us about his past like that. I agree that it may really help, but that can't be a one-way street. If we want him to trust us like that, we have to trust him."

He took a deep breath. "Look, I've trusted you guys with my life for a few years now. Jericho hasn't been on the team for very long, but he was part of the group that saved us all from the Brotherhood. If he hadn't been there…

"My point is, I think I should be able to trust you to keep my identity and accept the parts of my past that are kind of… unpleasant.

"Besides, we keep saying that the Titans are a family, and we'll support each other through anything, but there's so much that we don't know about each other. We've never really shown that we trust each other.

"If any of you disagree with me, I'll back off, but I think that the Titans East should go masks-off."

"I can't believe I'm saying this," Aqualad muttered, "but I agree with Speedy."

Mas and Menos looked at each other. "**He does have a point."**

"**I guess so, but I don't really want to talk about it."**

"**Menos…"**

"**Alright, fine."**

"I can't really argue with that," Bumblebee admitted. "Jericho?"

Joey looked at his five friends and made his decision. If they could trust him, he could trust them. He would tell them everything—except that Slade was his father.

He nodded.

"Okay," Speedy said, pulling off his mask, "I'll go first. My name's Roy Harper…"

* * *

TANGENT TIME!!

The next five chapters will take a little detour from our story line and tell the origin stories of the various members of the Titans West in the following order: Speedy, Aqualad, Mas y Menos, Bumblebee, Jericho.

Speedy's, Aqualad's and Jericho's stories are all taken from the comics with adjustments made so that they make sense in the cartoon world. (Jericho may also gloss over some things to disguise his father's ID.)

Mas y Menos were created for the cartoon, so I get to totally make up their story.

Bumblebee has a comic-origin, but it would make no sense in the cartoon verse, (It revolves around the fact that her boyfriend, who would later become Herald, was a Titan) so I'll make up most of it, but I'll try to bring in some aspects of who she was.

By the way, this isn't totally pointless—at least two or three of the origins will matter later in the story.


	8. Histories, part 1: An Archer's Evolution

The next few chapters will include a number of heavy issues including, but not limited to, death, possible child abandonment, neglect, drug use, regicide, infanticide, child experimentation, murder, possible suicide, revenge, kidnapping, and peer pressure. Be forewarned. If, after you see how I deal with the topics, you think that my rating is too low, tell me. If a significant number of people tell me to, I'll up the rating to M.

Also, since I am determined to the entire origin and the team's reactions into one chapter each, this is by far the longest chapter I have written to this point at 3,363 words, and the others will also be quite long. Matt the Batman Fan, you'd better appreciate this.

And a special thanks to Gottaluvit who allowed me to use her idea of how Roy would recover if Dinah hadn't taken him in when Ollie threw him out.

Also, when Roy is interacting with any Navajo, they will be speaking in the Navajo language, whatever that happens to be.

Finally, some of the origins will have other non-Titan superheroes in them. I'll put them in the key for that chapter, but not later chapters, because you won't need to remember their names any longer.

Joseph/Joey=Jericho  
Roy=Speedy  
Oliver/Ollie=Green Arrow (Speedy's mentor)

Without further ado, let's start the Histories!

* * *

Histories, part 1: An Archer's Evolution

"I never knew my mother.

"Actually, I know very little about my biological family. I think I was two when my father died. He had a friend named Brave Bow, a Navajo, who took me in after that.

"Brave Bow, in case you couldn't guess from his name, was a very talented archer, and he taught me how to use a bow and arrow almost as soon as I could hold one. I didn't really have many friends my age—the other children avoided me because I looked so different—so I had a lot of time to spend with Brave Bow and my archery…"

_Six-year-old Roy Harper ran up to his guardian, a finely-crafted bow slung over his shoulder. _

"_**Brave Bow!**__" he called enthusiastically, "__**Brave Bow, I did it! Come look!**__" He grabbed the older man's hand and pulled him to the archery range. "__**Look**__," he said, pointing to a target with an arrow sticking out of the exact center, "__**I did it!**__"_

_Brave Bow examined the target carefully and then turned to his youthful charge. _

"_**Split it**__," he said calmly._

_Still grinning widely, Roy pulled out an arrow and placed it in his bow. He aimed carefully and released. The arrow flew true and split the one that had already been in the target cleanly in two._

"_**Split it,**__" Brave Bow repeated._

_Again Roy loaded the bow, again he aimed, and again he fired. Again, the arrow in the center of the target split in two as it was struck._

_Brave Bow nodded. "__**Your aim is good,**__" he said, "__**but you take too long to fire the arrow. Correct that, and we will advance to moving targets. If you continue working hard, you will be hunting soon.**__"_

"So that was my life until I was around fourteen. Then Brave Bow got sick, and he never recovered. When we realized that he was dying, everything I knew changed…"

_Roy looked up as the Navajo chief walked out of the teepee._

"_**Is he…?**__"_

_The older man shook his head sadly. "__**I am sorry, Little Red Brother, but he will not recover.**__"_

_Roy swallowed and blinked back sudden tears. "__**I think I knew that,**__" he said quietly. "__**What—what happens to me now?**__"_

"_**I am sorry that you must hear this now, Little Red Brother, but you cannot stay here; this is not where you belong. You are of the White Man's world, and you must return to the White Man's world.**__"_

"_**You can't make me leave; the reservation is my home!**__"_

"_**Not anymore. I am sorry, Little Red Brother, but my decision is final. **_

"_**There is a white man, quite wealthy, who has agreed to take you in. I think he will treat you well. His name is Queen.**__"_

"And that's how I became the ward of Oliver Queen, Star City's resident billionaire playboy. He was a good man, but I knew immediately that he had only taken me in because there was nowhere else for me to go, and I promised myself that I would not become a burden.

"I soon heard about Green Arrow, the hero who used archery. I decided to go looking for him and see if I could make myself useful.

"So, one night not too long after Ollie took me in, I snuck out of the house. I took Brave Bow's bow and arrows—one of the few things I had left from the reservation—and, using every bit of stealth and tracking that the Navajo had taught me, I found Green Arrow just as he was stopping ten crooks from attacking a young girl…"

"_Now, you scumbags didn't _really_ want to _hurt _this young woman, did you?" Green Arrow asked mildly, standing between the men and their would-be victim. "What you _really_ wanted to do was surrender and turn yourselves in to the police."_

_Hiding in the shadows on a nearby rooftop, Roy Harper frowned. There was something _very_ familiar about that voice._

"_You think you're funny, old man?" the man who seemed to be the leader of the group sneered. "You're outnumbered ten-to-one."_

"_Trust me," the hero replied cockily, "one of me is more than enough."_

_With that, he exploded into motion. One, two, three boxing-glove arrows were fired in quick succession, and three thugs were hit in the face and knocked unconscious. A quick roundhouse kick took out the fourth. It was as Green Arrow turned to face his fifth opponent that he was hit in the shoulder with a sharp blow from a crowbar._

_Hissing in pain, he fell to his knees and dropped his bow._

_Grinning cruelly, the thug behind him raised the crowbar once more—and dropped it, howling in agony and clutching his hand, which had suddenly been pierced by a more traditional arrow._

"Now_ do you want surrender, or do I have to shoot more of you?" Roy had stepped out of the shadows and was standing on the roof, his bowstring pulled back tightly and another arrow pointed at the remaining thugs._

_Behind his mask, Green Arrow's eyes widened in recognition. "Roy?"_

"_That was a stupid move, kid," the leader of the thugs growled, and he and his four uninjured companions pulled out guns and pointed them directly at the red-headed boy._

"_No!" Green Arrow cried, reaching for his bow and knowing as he did that he couldn't possibly react in time to prevent all five thugs from firing._

_In the end, it didn't matter. Faster than even the archer's trained eyes could follow, Roy's arrows seemed to sprout from the five men's gun hands. All five dropped their weapons, shouting curses._

"_Let's get the hell out of here!" the leader shouted, and the men who still could fled for their lives._

_Green Arrow glanced at the place where the girl had been crouching, only to see that she had run to safety while her attackers had been focusing on him. He looked back at Roy, who by this time had climbed down from the roof and was standing next to him._

"_Thanks for the save, kid," he said, "but shouldn't you be at home sleeping?"_

_Roy looked more closely at the green-clad vigilante and gasped. "Ollie?!" he asked incredulously._

"_Quiet," Ollie Queen hissed desperately. "Not here." He looked at his ward and smiled slightly. "Let's go home," he said. "I think we have a lot to talk about."_

_

* * *

_

"_You're Green Arrow?" Roy repeated when they reached home. "You, Oliver Queen, are Green Arrow?!"_

"_The one-and-only," Ollie replied. "Why were you in that alley?"_

_Roy shrugged, "I followed you."_

_Ollie looked quite impressed. "Look, Roy, I've been wondering how I could take care of a kid and be Green Arrow, and I think this is the answer. You're good, kid, you're really good. How would you like to be my partner?"_

_Roy gaped. "You'd take me out there with you?"_

"_Sure. If the Bat can do it, why can't I? Unless you don't think you'd like to be a hero…?"_

_Roy grinned. "Are you joking? I'd love it!"_

"_Great," Ollie said, grinning back. "Now, I think you'll need a codename and a costume. That was the speediest bow-work I've ever seen, so I think I'll call you Speedy."_

"My life changed completely that night.

"By day, I was Roy Harper, ward of billionaire Oliver Queen and all-around great guy. By night, I was Speedy, partner to Green Arrow and co-protector of Star City. Girls wanted me, boys wanted to be me—and there were probably also some guys who wanted me and girls who wanted to be me—in both identities.

"As Ollie taught me hand-to-hand combat, how to fight while injured, how to dodge projectiles, and everything else I would need to survive as a non-powered costumed hero, I taught him stealth, tracking, and a few archery tricks that he hadn't managed to pick up on his own. All in all, it was a pretty awesome life.

"But Ollie… well, some people are born to be parents, and Ollie wasn't one of them. Add to that the fact that I was a pretty independent teenager, and Ollie soon thought of me more as an equal than a kid. This worked great for Speedy and Green Arrow's relationship, but it didn't work so well for Ollie's relationship with Roy. Independent as I was, I needed family, and Ollie just couldn't give me that.

"Over time he gave me more and more responsibility, and soon I could do basically whatever I wanted. I started slacking off in school and staying out late partying. My grades suffered, but Ollie didn't care as long as I was fine when I was Speedy.

"Then some pretty horrible things happened in his life, and he started taking long trips across the country in order to find… what he was fighting for, I guess. He didn't take me with him. I tried to convince myself that I didn't care and that I was fine without him, and I did a pretty good job—at least until the Tournament of Champions.

"Aqualad probably remembers that—the two of us, Robin, Cyborg, Beast Boy, Hotspot, Wildebeest, and Gizmo—don't ask why Gizmo—were kidnapped by this weirdo who made us fight each other and then stole our abilities. I still haven't figured out why he couldn't just steal them without having us fight first, but apparently he couldn't. (1)

"Well, we beat him, and Robin made me and Aqualad honorary Titans. Watching Robin, Cyborg, and Beast Boy interact really made me think about exactly what I was missing.

"Two weeks later, at the age of sixteen, I made what was probably the stupidest mistake of my life. I started using heroin.

"I think the worst part was that Ollie didn't notice, not even when I used the money in my college fund to buy the drugs. He may never have found out until I died from an overdose if he hadn't come home early from one of his trips…"

"_Hey, Roy," Ollie called as he opened the door to his ward's room, "I'm back. How—oh my god." He froze in shock, staring wordlessly at the scene in front of him._

_Roy was sitting at a table in the center of the room looking more than a little bit sick. He had a syringe in his hand, and it looked like he was about to plunge it into his arm. On the table in front of him were several things that Ollie recognized all too well._

"_Roy?! Roy, tell me this isn't what it looks like."_

"_Ollie? Y-you're not supposed to be back yet!" _

"_Oh god, it's true. You're a druggie. How—how could you be so stupid? You've seen what this stuff does to kids and their families!"_

"_Yeah, well, I didn't think it would hurt anybody else. And I was right, wasn't I? All this time, and you didn't even notice."_

"_All—Roy, how long have you been doing this?"_

_Roy didn't meet Ollie's eyes as he said, "Do you remember that big drug bust a while back when a bunch of heroin disappeared?"_

"_Y-you stole it? You _stole_ evidence from a drug bust?! Roy, I taught you better than that!"_

_The boy laughed bitterly. "You were never around long enough to teach me anything. If you were, maybe this wouldn't have happened."_

_The older man's face twisted in fury. "You're trying to blame this on me?! How dare you? This is _your_ stupid mistake. Only yours. Damn it, when the Bat finds out that my sidekick—"_

"_Sidekick? I thought we were _partners_." Roy said the word sarcastically and then snorted. "Typical. You don't care about anything except getting rid of the blame and how you're going to look. Did I ever mean anything to you?"_

"_You ungrateful—get out of my house. I never want to see you again."_

"I managed to feed the addiction for about a week after Ollie threw me out. Some of the things I did to get drug money… I don't really want to remember them, and you probably don't want to hear about them—trust me, you don't want to know.

"Anyway, somewhere towards the end of the week, I snuck into Ollie's house to get Brave Bow's bow. I almost sold it. I probably would have, except that the first person I tried to sell it to didn't think it was worth anything.

"I think that was what really woke me up. When I realized what I was about to do; what I had become; well, Ollie was right. I had been stupid, and I knew better. I had no one to blame except myself.

"I decided that I had to change, and in order to do so I would have to remove temptation. So I went to the one place that I really thought of as home: Arizona. I didn't go back to the reservation, but I managed to hitchhike to the middle of the desert, far away from any drug dealer.

"What followed was… horrible. I thought I was going to die. Several times I wanted to die, but I was just too stubborn. I couldn't tell you how long it took, but I eventually beat the addiction. I spent some time living off the land, and then Robin turned up…"

"_Hey, Speedy," Robin said as he approached the red-head, "you wouldn't believe how hard it was to find you here. You're pretty good at covering your tracks."_

_Roy looked up from the rabbit he had been roasting over a fire. "Hello, Robin," he said bitterly. "Come to tell me that the Titans don't want a member who's a washed-up druggie? Well, you don't need to._

"_And I'm not Speedy anymore. It's just Roy now."_

"_Roy, then. Can I sit down?"_

_Roy shrugged. "It's a free country."_

_Robin sat down in the dust on the other side of the fire. "Look, Roy, whatever you may think, I'm not here to throw you out of the Titans, or anything like that._

"_As for your using… well, from the look of things, you've beaten that. I just wish we had been there when you needed someone. When I made you a Titan, I meant it. You should have come to us for help."_

"_It wouldn't have mattered," Roy muttered, not looking Robin in the eye. "It was my stupid mistake. There was nothing that could have been done about it; not by you, and not by anyone else."_

"_Maybe," Robin conceded, "but there's something I can do now. I'm offering you a second chance."_

"_A second chance?"_

_Robin nodded. "A second chance to be a Titan. A second chance to be Speedy. A second chance to be a hero._

"_Aqualad is forming a new team in Steel City. A girl named Bumblebee is also going to be a member, and we're looking for two or three more. I'm here to offer you a slot."_

"_I don't want your handouts, Robin," Roy snarled._

"_It's not a handout," Robin replied calmly. "You were good when I faced you; very good. And I'm not just talking about your fighting skills, though they were quite impressive. You really have the mentality of a hero, more so than a lot of superheroes I know. You may need a little training to regain everything that you had, but I honestly believe that you could be truly great."_

_Roy watched Robin for a few minutes, considering, and then said, "You're serious, aren't you?"_

_Robin nodded. He hesitated, and said, "There's a rehab center in Steel City, so if you ever need anybody to talk to…" Roy looked up sharply. Robin swallowed and continued. "You wouldn't have to go as Speedy. I could even create a fake ID for you if you want."_

_Roy smiled. "I'll remember that, Rob. Thanks."_

"_So, are you accepting my offer to join the Titans East?"_

"_I guess so. But, uh, I don't exactly have any of my trick arrows anymore. Or a costume. Or, um, most of what I need," he finished sheepishly._

_Robin smiled. "That won't be a problem the Titans' budget is huge; we can buy you whatever you need. Do you still have your communicator?"_

"_Um…"_

"_Alright, we'll get you a new one. Do you want to come now, or is there anything that you want to take care of first?"_

"_Rob, what you're looking at right now is everything that I own. I'm ready to go when you are." He glanced at the rabbit he had been cooking, looked at Robin, and raised an eyebrow. "Unless you want to stay for lunch?"_

"So I went back to Steel City with Robin and, well, you know the rest." As Speedy finished his story, he looked up for the first time to face his shocked teammates.

"You were on _heroin_?!" Bumblebee blurted out.

"Telling you guys all this wasn't a _really_ bad idea, was it?" Speedy asked, pained.

"No," Bumblebee assured him, "I just need a moment to take it all in. Green Arrow really threw you out?"

"Bee, don't get on his case. My using was my fault. Ollie had nothing to do with it."

"Speedy—Roy, that's not true. He was your legal guardian _and_ your partner. He had a responsibility towards you, and he didn't fulfill it. He does bear some of the blame."

"Bee, I—never mind. I don't want to argue with you about this. It doesn't matter, anyway."

Bumblebee frowned, but she did not reply.

"I almost hate to say it," Aqualad said, "but knowing all this really… explains some things. I mean, a lot of the things that irritated me make a lot more sense now. And I can defiantly see why you're so obsessed with getting rid of drug dealers now." (2)

"That was sort of the point, Fishface. It's a lot easier to really get along with and trust a person when you understand them. Come on, you didn't think I _enjoyed_ talking about all those things, did you?"

Aqualad scowled. "I still don't like it when you call me 'Fishface,' Roy."

Speedy smirked. "I know. Why do you think I call you that, Fishface?"

Aqualad groaned, and Jericho smiled. "**You didn't think he would stop just because you **_**asked**_**, did you? We may know his name, but he's still the same Speedy, irritating habits and all.**"

Roy raised his eyebrows. "I love you too, Sideburns."

"**What's wrong with them?**"

"Well, they are a bit… old fashioned. I'm surprised the Wonder Twins don't make fun of _your_ hair."

Jericho shrugged. "**They like me better. It may have something to do with the fact that I don't call them 'the Wonder Twins.**'"

"Well, I _could_ call them 'the Tornado Twins,' but I don't want to give them any ideas."

Bumblebee shook her head. "I can't believe that you can joke around after talking about all that. You've had some pretty horrible things happen in your life, haven't you?"

Speedy instantly became serious again. "I'd be willing to bet that most of us have—us being everyone in the capes-and-masks society, not just the Titans. I think most of us got into this business, at least on some level, so that no one else would have to go through what we did."

Bumblebee shrugged. "Maybe, but hearing this still makes me feel quite a bit better about some of the things that have happened to me."

Mas nodded. "**It's definitely harder to justify an unwillingness to discuss any part of our past.**"

Menos and Jericho had to agree.

"Do you still have Brave Bow's bow?" Bumblebee asked.

Speedy nodded. " It's in my room." He looked around. "Well," he said, "there's no way I'm going to be the only one who goes through that. Who's next?"

Aqualad looked at him and shrugged. "I guess I am. My name is Garth."

"Garth what?"

"Just Garth; Atlantians don't have last names. I was born in a city called Shayeirs, the capital of the Idylists, who broke off of Atlantis approximately 4000 years ago…"

* * *

1: This bothers me, in case you didn't notice, because it doesn't make sense and there's no explanation. The best I can come up with is that they had to be weakened for him to take them, but he got Cyborg without a problem. It's weird.

2: This obsession with drug dealers has absolutely no basis in cartoon-canon, but Arsenal (adult Speedy) does have a similar fixation in the comics.

So there you go, and hopefully everything works. Aqualad is next.

But Cartoon Network got rid of Garth's purple eyes! Darn it, don't they know those were important? Oh well, I figure something out…

Solid black eyes can't be THAT common…

See you next time for: Histories, part 2: Cursed Prince


	9. Histories, part 2: The Exiled Prince

I'm a bad person. I abandoned my loyal readers with no warning and without a very good reason, and I'm sorry.

Of course, this is the longest chapter I have yet written, and easily the most complex. The next three will be similar. Which brings me to my next point: I have come to realize that it is simply not possible for me to type one of these Histories chapters in two weeks. As such, the next few chapters will be irregular. Hopefully we'll resume the bi-weekly postings when we return to our regularly scheduled story.

Now that that's out of the way…

This was not as easy a chapter for me to write as the last one, partially because I don't know quite as much about Garth as I do about Roy, partially because he's in the show more than Roy is, and partially because some things about him in the cartoon directly contradict facts about his life in the comics.

For example, comic!Garth has had numerous things happen to him because his eyes are purple. cartoon!Garth's eyes are solid black. So I assumed that that's not normal for Atlantians and used it.

Also, comic!Aqualad could swim fast, talk to fish, breathe underwater, and was stronger that normal humans. Then he learned magic, became Tempest, and gained abilities similar to those he uses in the cartoon. But cartoon!Aqualad uses those abilities the whole time…

I also had to decide whether to include Tula (yes), Dolphin (no), and other characters. (About Tula—I couldn't find all that much about her personality, so I made it up. I hope I don't offend anybody.)

So this is what I came up with. Hope you like it!

Atlantians all use telepathy and Atlantian when speaking to each other or fish.

Joseph/Joey=Jericho  
Roy=Speedy  
Garth=Aqualad  
Arthur/Orin=Aquaman (Aqualad's mentor)

* * *

Histories, part 2: The Exiled Prince

My parents, King Thar and Queen Berra, ruled from Shayeris, the capital city of the pacifist Idylists. They were, from what I have been able to discover, basically good rulers, and the country did well under their leadership.

Unfortunately, my father's brother was a powerful and evil sorcerer known as Slizzath—I don't _know _who in their right mind would name a child "Slizzath," Roy. Does it really matter?

Anyway, my uncle was banished for practicing Necromancy. He disappeared for several years then returned with an army of the undead. My father defeated him, trapped him in some sort of alternate dimension, and saved Shayeris. Of course, in the process he used violence, which the Idylists took as a sigh of madness. So, naturally, they killed him and exiled his pregnant wife.

Berra made her way to Atlantis, where she gave birth to me. A whole _new_ set of problems arose when they saw my eyes—No, Roy, eyes like mine are _not_ normal for Atlantians. Most Atlantians' eyes look just like a human's. Apparently, as I found out much later, eyes like mine are a sign of great magical potential. But the priests in Atlantis thought they were a sign of demonic possession, or something. They decided that the only thing to do was to bring me to a reef far from anything or anyone and abandon me there. As far as I can tell, my mother made no attempt to prevent my death.

But I didn't die. I don't know how, but I survived alone on that reef with no one but the odd fish for company, for 10 years.

Then King Orin of Atlantis, better known on the surface as Aquaman, found me.

_Aquaman swam cautiously towarsd the reef. Several of his fish friends had told him of a humanoid who had been seen swimming there. He talked to them occasionally—mainly to ask to be left alone—but he usually kept to himself unless approached. The fish reported that he seemed to be a harmless child, but appearances could be deceiving—after all, Aquaman himself was indistinguishable from a surface-dweller._

_He paused a few feet from the reef. There was no reason to startle the boy._

"_**Hello**__," he called. "__**My name is Orin. Will you come out?**__" There was no reply. "__**I mean you no harm,**__" he tried again, __**"I would just like to meet you**__."_

_A small black-haired boy stuck his head out. He stared at Orin silently, and Orin was startled to see that his eyes were solid black. He forced himself to look away; blond hair was nearly non-existent in Atlantians, so he knew what it felt like to feel different. _

_The boy; however, didn't seem to mind staring at him. _

"_**You're like me,**__" he said finally, sounding startled. "__**You look like me.**__"_

_Aquaman chuckled. "__**Well, not exactly like you,**__" he said pointedly._

"_**But you're shaped like me, except bigger,**__" the boy told him. "__**I thought everyone else had fins and stuff.**__"_

"_**You've never seen anyone except for fish?**__" Aquaman asked in shock. The boy shook his head. "__**Then how do you know Atlantian?**__" The boy shrugged. "__**How long have you lived here?**__"_

"_**Forever, I think.**__"_

"_**Where are your parents?**__"_

"_**What are parents?**__" the boy asked curiously._

_Orin immediately felt pity for this strange young orphan boy. "__**Do you have a name?**__" he asked._

"_**I'm Garth.**__"_

"_**My name is Orin, Garth. Would you like to come home with me?**__"_

Orin convinced me to come home with him. His wife wasn't sure what to make of me at first, but we eventually grew very close. She didn't yet have any children of her own, so she and Orin adopted me.

I had discovered, once I began interacting with normal Atlantians, that most of my abilities were superior to theirs: I could swim faster, I was stronger, and my telepathy had a greater range. At the time we assumed that it was because I had lived alone for so long and had been forced to fend for myself.

This led to my second new role: In addition to being King Orin's new son, I became Aquaman's new sidekick, Aqualad. This was my first introduction to the surface world, and to mankind's less altruistic side.

Being the adopted son of the king of Atlantis was… strange. I didn't yet know about my own royal blood, so I went from being an orphan hermit to being a prince. I spent a lot of time in some of the deeper, more deserted halls trying to escape attention. That was where I met Tula.

_Garth was sprinting ahead as fast as he could, watching over his shoulder for the servant who was probably still chasing him. Couldn't these people understand that he liked to be alone sometimes? Was it really so strange that he didn't want to spend all day every day being fawned over by courtiers and servants? Why did they search for him and scold him every time he tried to get some time to himself?_

_He was so busy with his own thoughts that he didn't notice the other person in the hallway until he ran into her._

"_**Ow**__," the slim brunette muttered, rubbing her head where it had collided with Garth's, "__**what's the hurry?**__"_

"_**Oh, I'm—I'm really sorry**__," Garth stuttered. "__**I didn't see—I mean, I was running from someone and I wasn't looking—I mean—sorry**__," he finished lamely._

"_**That's alright,**__" the girl sighed. "__**I'm sure it was an accident. Who were you running from, anyway?**__"_

"_**One of the servants. I just wanted some time to myself, but he kept **_**following**_** me everywhere. They **_**always**_** follow me. I hate it!**__"_

"_**They're only doing their jobs,**__" she reminded him, sounding slightly amused. "__**They've been hired to be there whenever you want something. If they leave you alone, how can they do that?**__"_

"_**I know, but that doesn't make it less annoying.**__"_

_The girl laughed. "__**I know what you mean. My name's Tula, by the way. What's yours?**__"_

"_**Garth.**__"_

_Tula gasped. "__**You're the boy King Orin adopted, aren't you? Did you really grow up on a reef?**__"_

"_**Yes and yes. What are you doing here, by the way? I thought only the royal family could come down here?**__"_

"_**Well, technically I am royalty.**__" Tula explained. "__**My parents died when I was really young and one of King Orin's distant cousins adopted me. I grew up as a princess, but I've never completely felt like I belong in the palace.**__"_

"_**We're very similar, aren't we,**__" Garth pointed out. "__**Both of us are orphans adopted by members of the royal family, but neither of us really feels comfortable being royalty.**__"_

_Tula laughed again. "__**You're right,**__" she said. "__**I suppose we outsiders ought to stick together.**__"_

_Garth smiled._

So Tula became my first real friend in that palace and, eventually, my girlfriend.

A couple of years later, she unveiled her own alter-ego: Aquagirl. At that point I had a choice between working on a team with Tula or as Orin's sidekick. Orin and I began working together less and less.

Anyways, Orin—I'll get to that Roy, will you have a little patience? Yes, there is a reason that you've never met her, but there are other things I have to tell you first. Come on, I was quiet during _your_ story, wasn't I?

As I was saying, Orin didn't have any biological children at the time, so he began training me to be the next king of Atlantis. As part of this training, I traveled with him on many diplomatic journeys. Tula often came with us so that I would have someone to talk to while Orin was in meetings that I didn't attend.

Inevitably, one of these journeys led us to Shayeris.

"_**Orin,**__" Garth asked, "__**why is everybody staring at me?**__"_

"_**People **_**always**_** stare at you, Garth,**__" Tula pointed out. "__**That's what happens when you're the next king of Atlantis.**__"_

"_**They're staring at me more than usual,**__" Garth insisted. "__**And they're not staring at Orin nearly as much as they should be. There's something weird going on here.**__"_

"_**Well,**__" Orin said, "__**you're not going to solve this mystery by sitting in the room or in a meeting. Why don't you two explore while I meet with the representatives of Shayeris?**__"_

"_**You're trying to get rid of us!**__" Garth accused._

_Orin laughed. "__**Possibly. Relations with Shayeris have been strained ever since they executed their king, so this meeting is likely to be… interesting.**__"_

_Tula gasped. "__**They **_**executed**_** their king? Why?**__"_

"_**They said that he had gone insane. It's probably true: the Idylists are extremely pacifist and would not simply have killed him on a whim. There are only a few crimes in the Idylist society that earn the death penalty. One of them is murder.**__"_

"_**Wow,**__" Garth said. "__**Is it legal for the people to execute the king?**__"_

"_**Well,**__" Orin replied, "__**That depends on who you ask.**__"_

* * *

_Twenty minutes later, Garth and Tula stood outside a long corridor. The walls were decorated with portraits of all Shayeris's former kings and queens._

"_**Are you sure this is it?**__" Garth asked._

"_**He said that the Room of Records is behind the Hall of Monarchs.**__" Tula said. "__**If this isn't the Hall of Monarchs, I don't think we'll ever find it. If you really want to find out more about crazy King Thar, this is the place. I don't think it's necessary, though. I highly doubt the Atlantians are going to have you killed.**__"_

"_**Maybe not,**__" Garth conceded, "__**but it can't hurt to be careful. It is my life.**__"_

"_**That's true. Just don't get too paranoid.**__"_

"_**Yes ma'am.**__"_

_Tula laughed. "__**Aright, King Thar and Queen Berra should be the first picture…. Poseidon.**__"_

"_**What? What is—**__" Garth also fell silent as he, too, saw the picture. "__**They look just like me, don't they,**__" he said finally._

"_**No wonder everyone was staring,**__" Tula breathed._

"_**But—but it's just a coincidence,**__" Garth, insisted. "__**Isn't it?**__" Tula said nothing. "__**Isn't it?**__"_

_Tula bit her lip and looked at Garth silently for a long time. Then she turned and ran down the hall to the Room of Records. After what seemed like hours that Garth spent staring at the image of the last monarchs of Shayeris, she returned, wearing an expression that was a peculiar mix of pity, awe, and disgust._

"_**Tula? What…?**__"_

"_**I found the records,**__" Tula said. "__**When Thar was killed, his wife, Berra, was pregnant. She was banished. When she gave birth to a son, the priests decided to kill him. They abandoned him on a reef: The same reef—"**__ She paused and swallowed. Garth was starting to get a very bad feeling about this.__"__**The same reef where you were found. And according to your estimated age, you were probably born around the time Berra's baby was.**__"(1)_

_Garth stared at her. "__**You mean to tell me that, in addition to being the Crown Prince of Atlantis, I'm also the prince of the Idylists?!**__"_

"_**Garth,**__" Tula said gently, "__**Thar's heir would be his son, not his wife. You're the **_**king**_** of the Idylists.**__"_

_Garth was silent for a long time. "__**No wonder everyone was staring at me,**__" he said finally._

So, after that—Roy, will you stop interrupting me? Yes, they did want me to be their king, and they've been asking me to take the position ever since I found out who my parents really were. The reason I'm not living in the royal palace at Shayeris is that I don't want to be king.

Because they killed my father! Why would I want to rule over the people who banished me before I was born because my father tried to protect them?

…You really have no idea what it means to be a king, do you? It's not all fun and games and watching everyone do whatever you tell them to; not if you're a good king, anyways. It's a tremendously high-stress job and a huge responsibility. When there's a king, people tend to take all their problems to him and assume that he'll fix them. I never wanted to be king of _anything_, and I certainly wouldn't take over the throne of Shayeris, even if I _didn't_ think I would spend my entire reign afraid that I would die if I did something they didn't like.

My mother? I don't know what she thinks of that, and I honestly don't care. I've never tried to contact her. Because she let them try to kill me! I was an infant; I was her _son_; and she didn't even try to protest when they sentenced me to death for having weird eyes! I've never talked to her, and I never want to.

Now that that's covered…

After we found out that I was a king in my own right, Orin started getting a little… weird.

I suppose he had a little trouble excepting the fact that his adopted son was the ruler of his own distinct kingdom. Then Orin's wife gave birth to a son. I was ecstatic: Not only was I happy for the people that I had come to think of as my mother and father, but now I did not have to worry about ruling Atlantis. Orin; however, seemed to think that I would be desperate to rule Atlantis despite everything that I had done to avoid ruling Shayeris. He began to grow paranoid and even to see me as a threat to himself and to his son.

Needless to say, I soon decided that it would be a good idea for me to spend as much time as possible away from Atlantis. Tula came with me, and we were very happy for a while.

Then a criminal named Trident escaped Atlantian prison. Tula and I quickly realized that we could not deal with him alone, so Tula went to ask Orin for help. Unfortunately, he was as stubborn as always, so that took _far_ longer than it should have. Meanwhile, Trident managed to bring himself to the attention of the Teen Titans. After reluctantly accepting Beast Boy's help, I managed to stop Trident.

Tula, as I recall, was not happy when she finally brought Orin, only to hear that we didn't need his help after all. (2)

A few months later, I was essentially kidnapped to an alternate dimension by a mage named Atlan who turned out to be Orin's father. Once he managed to convince me to trust him, Atlan began to teach me how to use my own magical abilities.

Yes, I have magic. How did you think I'm able to completely control the water around me?

No. That's not something all Atlantians can do. Stop asking stupid questions.

Anyway, the training took a few years, but I discovered when I returned that, due to some side effect of being in an alternate dimension, I had only been gone a few months. (3)

I do hear you, Roy, I'm just ignoring you.

As I was saying…

The Tournament of Heroes happened a few weeks later, but Roy's already told you about that.

Nothing else of interest happened until Brother Blood decided to move his headquarters into the ocean. Tula and I weren't going to stand for that, so we went to stop him. Unfortunately, we greatly underestimated both his power and his ruthlessness.

"_**Alright,**__" Garth said as he and Tula approached the underground fortress, "__**there it is**__."_

_Tula stared. "__**That thing is **_**huge. **_**What is he hiding in there?**__"_

"_**Does it matter?**__" Garth asked. "__**Whatever it is, this Blood is bad news.**__"_

_They silently swam closer, keeping to the shadows as much as possible. It didn't help. A small change in the underwater currents was the only warning Garth had before a boy in a yellow scuba diving suit leapt out from a small cavern behind Tula. Tula, who did not have Garth's mystical connection to the ocean, received no such warning._

"_**Tula!**__" Garth screamed telepathically, "__**behind you**__!" _

_But Tula didn't seem to hear him. Cursing, he summoned his powers and quickly created a small whirlpool behind Tula, throwing her attacker into a nearby rock._

_Tula felt the whirlpool and spun around, noticing for the first time the danger she had been in. She turned back to Garth, furious. Garth could not hear her say anything, but from the expression on her face he guessed that she was rebuking him for not warning her._

_Garth suddenly realized what must have happened. Swallowing his terror, he began to speak in English, which he and Tula thankfully both knew. _(4)_ "Tula, didn't you hear my warning?"_

_Tula seemed puzzled by his use of the strange language, but she answered in it nonetheless. "Warning?" She said. "What warning? You didn't warn me. Did you?"_

"_Tula," Garth said nervously, "I think our telepathy is being jammed."_

"_Jammed?" Tula asked incredulously, after a few moments in which she tried desperately to communicate telepathically. "Who could jam our telepathy?"_

"_An extremely powerful telepath," Garth said grimly._

"_But without our telepathy," Tula said, "we can't call for help. We can't talk to any sea creatures. We're alone against whatever this Brother Blood decides to throw at us."_

"_I think," Garth concluded, "that it might not be a bad idea to retreat."_

_It was too late. Yellow-suited soldiers poured from every crack and crevice. In moments, Garth and Tula were utterly surrounded. They tried desperately to stay close together, but they found that as the fight progressed they were being pushed farther and farther apart. Soon, they had no energy to concentrate on anything but avoiding and returning their enemies blows._

_As Garth ducked under what seemed like the billionth blow and countered with a blow of his own that sent his attacker flying away from him, he finally found enough of a respite to check on his girlfriend's progress. What he saw nearly caused his heart to stop._

_Tula was so busy fighting off the enemies who had attached her from either side that she had failed to notice the boy approaching from behind._

"_Tula!" Garth yelled desperately, "behind you!"_

_It was then that Garth discovered the real reason that Atlantians communicate telepathically: Sound simply does not travel through the water the same way it travels through the air. Tula did not near Garth's warning, and he could only watch in horror as her body was pierced by the weapon of Brother Blood's henchman._

"_Tula!" Garth cried, praying that he had misjudged the severity of her injuries. Tula did not move. "_TULA!_" Garth screamed again in anguish. _

_One of Brother Blood's soldiers decided to take advantage of Garth's distraction and moved in for the kill._

_That was a mistake._

"_You." Garth hissed. "You did this. YOU MURDERED TULA!"_

_With an almost inhuman scream of pain and rage, Garth poured every ounce of his power into the destruction of the beings who had dared to harm the girl he loved. The entire surrounding area, except for a small bubble around Garth, began to churn and boil violently, burning some enemies alive and flinging others into the surrounding rocks with such force that many of the rocks began to splinter and crack._

_In seconds, every soldier who was not killed or incapacitated had fled the scene. _

_Soon Garth found he did not have the strength to sustain the underwater storm any longer. It took all his remaining strength to swim slowly to Tula's body and drag her away. _(5)

* * *

_Garth carried Tula's body back to the cave where the two had lived for years, buried her, and then began to swim back to the sight of the battle, taking time neither to rest nor eat._

"_BLOOD!" he screamed as soon as he was close to the HIVE Headmaster's base. "COME OUT HERE AND FACE ME! COME FIGHT ME, UNLESS YOU'RE AFRAID! IF YOU WANT ME DEAD, COME KILL ME YOURSELF!" His voice fell until it was just a whisper. "I will _not_ die alone."_

"_Sorry," a voice said behind him, and he spun to see a girl in tight black pants, a short yellow-and-black shirt, and a small oxygen mask, "Brother Blood's busy. You're going to have to be content with me."_

_Garth snarled and gathered his power, but the girl was faster. She flew at him and drove her shoulder into his stomach. The two of them went flying backwards into a nearby boulder, but instead of hitting the rock they fell through a crack and into a large cavern._

"_Okay," the girl said suddenly, letting go of Garth and relaxing her stance. "Blood won't be able to hear or see us in here."_

"_Who are you?" Garth asked, still ready to attack if the girl showed any hint of violent intentions._

"_My name is Bumblebee," the girl answered, "and I used to be a student at HIVE."_

"'_Used to be'?"_

"_Well," Bumblebee admitted, "I technically still am, but I want out." _

"_Why?" Garth asked bluntly, still suspicious._

_Bumblebee hesitated slightly. "A number of reasons," she said slowly. "One of the big ones is that I've realized I was never meant to be a villain. It just doesn't feel right. But more than that…_

"_HIVE used to be a good place, despite the fact that they were training us to be villains. The teachers were strict, but only because they knew we'd have to be tough to survive on the path we'd chosen. They genuinely cared for us and wanted us to succeed. _

"_Then the Headmistress disappeared, and Brother Blood appeared. Suddenly, HIVE stopped being a school and became a breeding ground for Blood's minions. If anyone resisted, he used his telepathy to take over their mind. The only reason I can still think for myself is that he's trying to control a lot of people at the same time and I've convinced him that I'm not resisting._

"_I can't keep going like this."_

"_So you think the two of us can take Blood down?"_

"_Not alone, but there's a group that could. You can ask them for help. I can't. Do you know the Teen Titans?"_

_Garth nodded warily. "I'm a member of the Titans," he told Bumblebee. "An honorary member, at least."_

_Bumblebee smiled in obvious relief. "Oh good. Then this actually might work._

"_You see, the Titans have faced Blood before, when his headquarters were in Jump City. Cyborg infiltrated HIVE and did enough damage that Blood was forced to relocate. Coupled with the information I have on Blood's latest weapon, they can't _not_ help."_

"_Do you mean to tell me," Garth asked furiously, "that Tula is dead because the Titans assumed that Blood no longer mattered once he was out of Jump?!" _(6)

"_Wait," Bumblebee commanded, "I'm not done."_

"_What else is there to say?"_

"_I'll help you on one condition."_

"_What condition?"_

"_If I betray Brother Blood, he won't forget it. Ever. If you want my help, you have to swear that you won't stop until—"_

"_Until Blood is no longer an issue?" Garth finished. "You don't have to worry about that."_

"I enlisted the help of the Titans. Blood escaped, so we formed the Titans East to make sure he was stopped," Garth finished.

"You know," Roy remarked, "the fact that this team existed for the sole purpose of defeating one villain seems to have slipped everybody's mind during the recruitment process."

"**Well,**" Jericho responded, "**the team still exists, so I would say we've come to be about more than just Blood.**"

"Hey, Fishface," Roy said, "did you ever tell Robin what happened to Tula?"

Garth gave him a Look. "Would you?" he asked.

Roy considered it for a moment. "Probably not." He admitted. "Okay, who's next?"

The four remaining Titans looked at each other. "**Us, I suppose**," Mas said finally.

"**What fun,**" Menos muttered.

* * *

1: Since Garth spent the first decade or so of his life alone, I would guess that he doesn't know exactly how old he is. The doctors at Atlantis could guess, but that's it. Of course, after he found these records, he would know.

2: If you didn't notice, this episode gave me some trouble. I eventually decided that when Garth told Beast Boy that he usually works alone, he was just trying to get rid of him. Oh, and I'm ignoring Tramm's existence because I don't know _what_ to do with him. Sorry, Tramm lovers.

3: Did anybody else notice that Garth doesn't use his water controlling ability and the like in _Deep Six_? The explanation could just be that he didn't need them or that they work strangely underwater, but I like this theory. And I know he doesn't really look older, but I'm sure I can come up with an explanation for that if you give me enough time.

4: Do Atlantians have a spoken language? It seems to me that they wouldn't, because they communicate telepathically, but I could be wrong.

5: Yeah, Blood killed Tula. Well, Garth seemed to have taken a rather personal dislike to him, and it couldn't have just been because he decided to base himself in the ocean besides, why else would Garth suddenly want to move onto dry land? As for why he didn't mention that before, two reasons. (a) The pain was too recent to discuss it. (b) It's kinda personal, dontcha think?

6: And _that's_ why he tore the door down instead of knocking. And yes, I know Garth's being harsh. There's no was they could have known what Blood would do. Besides, we don't know that the Titans didn't look for Blood. It's not like "Deception" ended with Robin shaking his head and saying, "He's China's problem now." (Anyone know where that comes from?) But cut Garth some slack. He's just lost a girl that he's loved for years.

Whew, it's finally done. Well, I guess there's nothing left to say except review, and hopefully the next chapter won't take quite as long as this one did.


	10. Histories, part 3: More or Less

And I'm back! This chapter was fun to write; I hope it's also fun to read. It also took a long time to write, so you'd better take a long time to read it!

Okay, I'm joking, but I did put a lot of effort into this.

Also, I realized pretty early in the writing of this that if I decided to bold all the Spanish I would be putting 90% of the words in bold, so I'm doing things a bit differently for this chapter. Everything not in bold is Spanish. Everything in bold is English. It switches back to normal as soon as the twins are done telling their story. I'll put a page break to indicate the change.

Hopefully I won't confuse people too badly.

Joseph/Joey=Jericho  
Garth=Aqualad  
Roy=Speedy

* * *

Histories, part 3: More or Less

"We don't know our real names. We don't know who our parents are. We don't even know how old we are.

"Our earliest memories are of a laboratory. The only people we ever saw were a group of scientist. We think we were somewhere in Mexico. They were experimenting on us. We don't really know what they were trying to do or find. In those days we rarely even knew if it was day or night.

"We never left the building that the lab was in. We never saw any windows. All we ever saw was the lab, the room where we lived and slept, and the hallway between them.

"Our room was fairly small and very simple. There were two beds and no other furniture. The beds were just big enough for us to lie down on, and the mattresses were probably one or two inches thick. There were two doors; one leading to the hallway and one leading to our bathroom. The door two the hallway had a slit through which food was passed three times a day—simple food, and always the same—and through which we pushed the empty trays when we were done eating.

"We spent most of the time alone in that room, so we came up with a lot of ways to stay busy. We slept. We talked. We invented games.

"Sometimes the scientists would come to our room and bring us to the lab, where they would study us. They attached sensors to our bodies. They poured chemicals on us. They made us run, lift things, and answer questions. They took notes on the clipboards that they were always carrying. Then they brought us back to our room, where we stayed until they came to study us again. Sometimes they would take samples of our hair or skin, and it was a long time before we would see them again.

"Then, one day…"

"Come here, boy," the scientist said, gesturing to one of the twins. That was how they always referred to the children: "you," or "boy," or something similar. If the boys had names, they didn't know them.

_The child stepped forward. He and his brother had learned a long time ago that it was best to do what they were told, and do it fast._

"_Hold this," the scientists ordered, handing him a beaker of bright green liquid. Then the scientist, who was wearing thick rubber gloves, safety goggles, and protective clothing that covered his entire body, picked up a pair of metal rods attached to a buzzing machine and touched them carefully to the solution in the beaker. _

_The chemicals exploded._

_The boy holding them was thrown backwards into his brother, and the chemicals splashed all over both of them. Then they knew nothing but pain._

_Their skin was burning. The burning sank deeper and deeper; through their skin, through their muscles; into their bones. It spread to every part of their body. They were screaming; screaming with every ounce of their strength; but they barely noticed. _

_They lay on the floor for what seemed like hours, but when the haze of pain finally faded and they once again became conscious of the world around them, none of the scientist had taken more than a single step. It took them a few seconds to realize that everything else had severely slowed down severely._

_"What-what's going on?" one of the boys asked. "Why is everything so slow?"_

_"How should I know?" his brother replied. "It just is."_

_He stood up slowly. As soon as the boys were no longer touching, everything snapped back to normal speed. _

_The scientists quickly converged in a corner of the lab and began speaking quietly, gesturing at the boys every few minutes. After a long debate, two of the scientists walked forward. Each grabbed one boy and brought him over to the machines. They hooked the boys up to a series of sensors and wires, pulled out their clipboards, and began to take notes. Then each boy was grabbed by the hand, and their hands were pushed together._

_Time slowed down again as soon as their skin touched. The boys watched as the scientists took notes in slow motion before reaching out and pulling their hands apart. Once again, the world shot back to normal speed when the boys lost physical contact with each other._

_The scientists took hair samples, skin samples, and blood samples and then returned to brothers to their room._

_It was a long time before they saw the lab again._

"We're still not sure if they meant to give us the powers; or if they gave us the powers accidentally; or if the powers were in our DNA, and that's why they were studying us, but it doesn't really matter.

"We eventually realized that the world was not slowing down when we touched; we were speeding up.

"When the scientists finally brought us to the lab again, they began to differentiate between us for the first time. We finally had names: Mas and Menos. (1) Other than that, we didn't really notice any significant changes in our lives after we got our powers.

"We were still fed three times a day—the same food and the same amount—though we began to notice that our new powers made us very hungry. We were still tested on, though most of the new tests revolved around our speed. And as time passed, we grew up. We started to wonder if there was anything else, anything outside the rooms where we had lived our entire lives.

"One day, we finally worked up the courage to ask."

"_Sir?" Mas asked hesitantly. They were in the lab, and the boys had just finished a test on how much fabric between their skin would cause their powers to stop working._

_The scientist stared at him. The test subject had never addressed him. _Never_. _

"_Yes?" he said finally. "What do you want, boy?"_

"_Well," Mas stuttered, "I--I just we were just wondering—"_

"_What's outside?" Menos burst out._

"_Outside?" the scientist asked. "Outside of what? What to you mean?"_

"_Outside _this_," Menos said, gesturing. "Outside this lab. There must be _something_ else, right? So what's it like? What's out there?"_

_The scientist watched him silently for a long time. "Nothing for you to concern yourself with," he said finally. "Now, if you would give me your hands, I will put this latex glove on you…"_

"So we stopped worrying about it. We thought about it sometimes, but only rarely.

"That was our life for—well, for years, probably. Then a new scientist came. We don't really know why he came, but then, we don't really know the reasons for most of what happened during those years. Whatever the reason, he seemed to be in charge—the other scientists all obeyed him—and when he arrived, our lives almost immediately became worse.

"For the first time, the experiments became painful. He began to feed us different food, much of which made us sick. Often we didn't receive a meal at all. We were miserable, and we started to think about the world outside again. We decided that whatever _was_ outside, it couldn't be worse than what we were already facing. (2)

"So we began trying to escape, but they must have had cameras or something in our cell because they seemed to know about every one of our plans before we even began to enact them.

"We were almost ready to give up, when we suddenly didn't need to act."

_Mas looked up dully when the door opened. He was hungry, tired, and in pain, and he was _not_ looking forward to returning to the lab. _

_It took him a few seconds to realize that he _wasn't_ returning—not right then at least—because the person he was looking at was definitely not a scientist. The man was tall and muscular, dressed in white from the neck down. His hair and beard were short and snow white. He wore an eye patch over one eye, and the other eye was amazingly blue and cold. He held a bloody sword in one hand, and he had numerous other weapons strapped to other parts of his body. _

_Mas swallowed and looked up, ready to grab his brother and run if he needed to._

"_**Do you understand English?**__" the man asked._

_Mas nodded mutely. Some of the scientists spoke English, so the brothers had learned to understand it, though they did not speak it well._

"_**Good**__." The man said. "__**Are you the boys they've been experimenting on?**__"_

_Mas nodded. He hesitated, then asked haltingly, "__**Who are you? What do you want with us?**__" (3)_

_The man narrowed his eyes. "__**What's your first language**__?" he asked instead of answering the boy's question._

"_**Spanish,**__" Mas replied, shocked._

_The man nodded and began speaking in perfect Spanish. "My name does not matter. And I'm not going to hurt you, so you can stop trying to decide whether there's enough room between me and the door to escape." Mas started guiltily. "Wake your brother up." The man ordered. "He should hear about this, too."_

_Mas swallowed, walked up to his brother, and shook him lightly. Menos groaned. He probably would have rolled over and gone back to sleep, but at that moment he saw the strange man._

"_Mas," he said nervously, clutching his brother, "who is that?"_

"_I'm not sure," Mas admitted, "but I don't think he's going to hurt us. He said he wanted to talk to us." _

"_Well," Menos said, "the door _is_ open. We can always run if we need to."_

"_He can't really be worse than what we've been through, can he?" Mas asked. _

"_I… guess not." Menos said doubtfully. The boys dropped each other's hands and turned to face the stranger._

"_Have you decided to pretend to trust me?" the man asked, sounding amused._

_The brothers glanced at each other, swallowed, and nodded. _

"_The scientists are dead," the man said simply. "You're free to go."_

_The boys stared at him. "F-free?" Menos repeated incredulously._

_"That's what I said," the man told them calmly._

_"But—why?" Mas asked." Why would you…?"_

_The man shrugged. "Because I was hired to stop the scientists," he answered. "And because I don't like people who hurt children."_

_"Thank you," Mas said, quietly but sincerely. _

_"Yes," the man said, seeming slightly uncomfortable, "well… you can go now."_

_And then Menos realized the problem. "Where?" he asked. "Where do we go?"_

_"I don't know," the man said, "Where did you live before the scientists found you?"_

_Mas shrugged. "We have no idea."_

_The man rolled his eyes and muttered something under his breath in a language the boys didn't know. "Alright," he said, "here's what you need to do: When you leave the building, run in that direction," he pointed behind the boys, "as fast as you can. The sun should be on your left. At the speed you'll be going, you'll soon attract the attention of the Justice Society. (4) When they find you, tell them your story. They're _heroes_;" the word seemed to amuse him; "helping the innocent is their job."_

"So we ran, faster and for longer than we had ever run before.

"Just like the man said, the Flash found us and, once he heard our story, he brought us to his teammates. They agreed that they had to do something to help us, but they didn't really know what.

"A few months later, they heard that Robin was forming a second team of Teen Titans. They contacted him, and soon we were members of the Teen Titans East."

* * *

Mas shrugged. "**And that's our story,**" he summarized.

Roy stared at him in horror. "You grew up in a _lab_?!" he asked incredulously. "You spent your childhood as _test subjects_?!"

Menos glared at him "**Stop,**" he said. "**Stop now. We don't need your pity, and we don't want it. We're Titans; not helpless little victims.**"

"Oh, come on," Roy said, "you can't drop something like that on us and not expect—"

"**I didn't want to tell you, did I?**" Menos snapped.

"Did you ever find out anything else about the man who saved you?" Garth cut in, changing the subject.

"**No,**" Mas said, "**and he never told us his name, so we probably never will. I wish we could thank him, but…**"

Bumblebee looked over at Menos, who was still glaring at Roy, and took a deep breath. "Well," she said, "I guess it's my turn. I should warn you before I start, my story isn't really like yours. I'm not a victim of circumstances, or human cruelty, or anything like that. Everything that's happened to me has been entirely my fault."

* * *

1: "Mas" apparently means "more," while "menos" means "less." Essentially, the scientists are hypothesizing that one brother has a positive polarization and the other has a negative polarization, and this is why there is a reaction when they touch.

2: Yeah, I know. That's not really true. But they're young, and they're really very sheltered.

3: Because I do not know Spanish, I'm not really sure what grammar mistakes a native Spanish speaker would make while speaking English, so you'll just have to pretend.

4: The Justice Society of America, or JSA is a group of superheroes from the DC comics. The first team existed pre-JLA; during WWII. The current team consists of several original members (none of whom aged normally) and several newer members. In the cartoon, numerous JSAers have appeared as part of the JLU.

I like to try to put Teen Titans and JLU in the same universe whenever possible. Since Kid Flash is clearly Wally West (he's not Bart, so there's no one else he _can_ be), this story takes place before the JLA exists. Therefore, the Flash that the twins encounter is Jay Garrick, the first Flash. (Wally is the third, following his Uncle Barry.)

So that's the twins' story. I hope to have Bee's up within a month or so, but no promises.

Don't forget to review!

But when you do, if you review anonymously, _please_ give me your e-mail address so that I can reply.

(This is a direct apology from the beta of this story, who has admittedly taken much longer than she should have in getting this chapter finished. This wonderful author sent me the chapter about two and a half weeks ago, and as I've been on break, I've had little to no time to work on it. So I apologize to those devoted readers who have been forced to wait the extra time.

– WiltingDaisies94)


	11. AN: Apology and explination

Hi. Protector of Canon2 here.

I recently realized just how long it's been since I updated anything, and how unfair that is to every one of my reviewers. I figure I owe you an explanation, so here goes: I'm a senior in high school. Next year, I'll be studying in a seminary in Israel, and the year after that, I'll be in college.

That means that at the end of the year, everything about my life—the amount of free time I have, the amount of responsibility I have, what I do with my time, even what country I live in—will change.

The year after that, everything will change again.

Then things'll remain relatively stable for around four years (three if I get really lucky and whatever college I end up going to accepts my AP credits in lieu of Freshman year) before everything changes _again_.

In the meantime, I have to apply to college, apply to seminary, decide where I want to go, look into some scholarship opportunities, keep up with my schoolwork, and stay relatively sane. I also would really like to work on some of my original fiction, and I want to send some of the stuff I've already written to magazines so that I might be able to (cross your fingers) get published.

Long story short (even though I've just told the long version…), I have neither the time nor the energy to work on my fanfics with anything resembling regularity.

So starting now, and lasting probably until mid-2011(when my life starts to stabilize) I'm officially going on hiatus.

I'll try to finish my Harry Potter story during second semester when applications will all be in and my schoolwork will lighten up.

I'm having a bit of writers block on my Teen Titans story in addition to the other issues, so don't get your hopes up if you're reading that. (Sorry.)

There's a 9-10 chapter Sky High fic that's been sitting in my notebook, written out completely, for a while, so if I ever have time, but not creative energy, I'll type that up and post it.

I'll also continue posting one-shots, and maybe two-shots, when I get required, because those don't require me to commit to anything.

But I won't post regularly, and I won't start any new stories.

So that's when where we stand, and I apologize again for the wait.

Thank you all for your patience and your understanding.

-Protector of Canon2


End file.
